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TheNewspaper: A Journal of Driving and Politicsen-usFrance, Italy: Speed Cameras Wrapped, Painted, Stonedhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6422.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6422.aspIn Maimrolle, France, officials were anxious to see the a large number of tickets generated by a speed camera newly installed on the RN57 last Tuesday. The feeling did not last long, as vigilantes blinded the device with black spraypaint on Friday, L'Est Republicain reported. Green was the color of choice to disable the speed camera in Souain-Perthes-les-Hurlus last week Monday, according to L'Union. In Dordogne, bright orange spraypaint was used on a speed camera on the RD707 on Tuesday, France Bleu reported.

On the Mediterranean island of Corsica, motorcyclists disabled several speed cameras last week Saturday. The French Federation of Angry Motorcyclists (FFMC) took responsibility for wrapping the cameras in Ajaccio in trashbags and added a color sign protesting the national speed limit drop that takes effect in July.

In Cintello, Italy, vigilantes knocked over the speed camera on the Strada 463 last week, La Nuova di Venezia e Mestre reported. In Chieti, a rock was used to smash the lens of the speed camera on the Via Tiburtina on Friday, according to Rete 8. The device had been out of commission since a previous attack in August. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-19T00:10-08:00Motoring Group Asks Feds To Stop Funding Ticket Trapshttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6419.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6419.aspSpeed trap towns should not get money from Uncle Sam if they are not following the rules. That was the argument the National Motorists Association made in a letter urging officials at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to stop bankrolling ticketing operations in jurisdictions that fail to adhere to federal standards designed to ensure speed limits are appropriate.

"Speed limits posted below Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)-recommended levels are dangerous, creating differential speeds in traffic flow that accentuate conflicts between drivers who travel safely with the prevailing flow of traffic and those who abide by the posted limit, even when it is well below the recognized norm," NMA president Gary Biller wrote to acting NHTSA chief Heidi King. "Braking, accelerating, quick lane changing, and irritated drivers become commonplace in these situations which creates conditions contrary to the government's role of protecting the safety of the public."

The group cited the findings of Virginia traffic engineer Joe Bahen who has completed a number of traffic studies on roads in the commonwealth that fail to comply with FHWA standards.

The group has, for example, been trying to stop the Virginia State Police from running a NHTSA-funded speeding ticket blitz on a five-mile stretch of Interstate 64 in Newport News. Just as the road widens from six to eight lanes, the speed limit drops from 65 MPH to 60 MPH. The road has a design speed of 70 MPH and was posted at 70 MPH prior to the imposition of the 55 MPH speed limit in the 1970s.

Under state law, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) may not lower a speed limit unless that action is "prescribed after a traffic engineering investigation" (see Virginia Code Section 46.2-878). VDOT has no study to back up the speed limit reduction. Using FHWA's speed limit formula, the highway should be posted at 70 MPH.

"An 'appropriate speed limit' is one that is realistic and credible, one that has been lawfully established pursuant to an engineering study conducted by a licensed professional engineer using sound engineering principles and the national FHWA traffic engineering standards that Virginia adopted in 1979," Bahen explained.

NHTSA grants represent a significant source of income for Virginia. Last year, the state collected $21 million from NHTSA, $5.4 million of which was used to pay officers overtime while manning speed traps.

A copy of the NMA letter is available in a 1.4mb PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-16T00:07-08:00Feds Try To Restore Confidence In Drugged Driver Surveyhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6423.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6423.aspThe National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is desperately trying to rehabilitate its controversial roadside drug testing program. On Monday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report outlining the reforms that NHTSA has proposed to address motorist concerns with the National Roadside Survey.

The last survey in 2014 relied upon police roadblocks that forced motorists to stop against their will so that they could be encouraged to "voluntarily" take a drug test. Passive alcohol sensors were also used to search vehicles for traces of alcohol without the motorist's consent. The heavy-handed tactics triggered a lawsuit and the ire of congressional lawmakers who banned the use of federal funding for any future surveys.

"While participation in the survey is random, voluntary, and compensated, civil libertarians have raised concerns about the presence of uniformed officers at the survey sites as the driving public may confuse survey sites with mandatory law enforcement checkpoints," the Senate report on the funding ban explained. "In addition, passive and active collection of blood and saliva as part of the testing process has raised privacy concerns."

Congress directed NHTSA and the GAO to report on how these concerns would be addressed. The government watchdog agency noted that the new survey methodology NHTSA implemented in 2014 was already sufficiently different from the use of police roadblocks to satisfy industry stakeholders. After the public outcry, NHTSA began using researchers to direct traffic and use police officers "in the background." Participants would be paid $10 to provide a saliva sample and $50 to have their blood drawn. Drivers who refused to go along with this were still asked to give a breath sample before leaving.

"Our assessment of this methodology found that changes related to the use of law enforcement officers, among others, addressed perceived concerns raised by some drivers during the most recent survey regarding voluntary participation and the privacy of drivers," GAO analyst Susan Fleming wrote.

GAO came to this conclusion after seeking the view of stakeholders, which included agencies and organizations involved in enforcement, such as the Office of National Drug Control Policy and the Society of Forensic Toxicologists. It also considered the views of AAA, a leading insurance company that profits from traffic tickets and driving-related arrests.

"None of the researchers or public safety stakeholders we spoke with had concerns about the role of law enforcement or about privacy protections," Fleming explained.

The US House of Representatives voted to continue banning funding of the National Roadside Survey in September. A copy of GAO's new report is available in a 200k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-15T00:05-08:00Federal Appeals Court Denies Camera Exec Demand For Rewardhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6421.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6421.aspThe former executive vice president of Redflex Traffic Solutions did not find a sympathetic ear in the Seventh Circuit US Court of Appeals on Monday. Aaron M. Rosenberg insisted he was owed $2.3 million as a reward for snitching on his colleagues at the Australian red light camera vendor. A three-judge panel slammed the door on that idea.

"In this classic case of chutzpah, Aaron Rosenberg, a former employee of Redflex Traffic Systems Inc, seeks a share of the proceeds his former employer paid the city of Chicago to settle the case against it arising out of the fraud Rosenberg helped perpetrate," Judge William C. Griesbach wrote for the unanimous court.

The appellate panel was fully satisfied with the "thorough" reasoning of US District Judge John J. Tharp Jr who delivered a stinging rebuke to Rosenberg last year (read opinion). The appellate court recounted how Redflex conspired with John Bills, a Chicago transportation official, and several front groups to expand the photo ticketing program to boost Redflex profits. The bribery scheme ran into trouble when the Chicago Tribune began its investigation.

"On March 13, 2012, the Tribune explained that the city sought bids to replace the red‐light cameras with automated speed cameras and that Resolute Consulting LLC, a consulting firm that worked closely with Redflex, promoted Redflex's bid for the project," Judge Griesbach wrote. "The article reported Bills, who had supervised Redflex's digital automated red light enforcement program contract with the city, had recently retired from his position with the city and now worked for Resolute and the Redflex‐funded Traffic Safety Coalition."

For turning state's evidence, federal prosecutors let Rosenberg escape accountability despite his central role in orchestrating the bribery scheme. The red light camera executive sought to add to this good fortune by citing Chicago's whistleblower ordinance to claim a reward for his assistance in securing the Finley, Bills and O'Malley convictions. Since the main facts of the case were already public knowledge, the disclosures that Rosenberg provided did not qualify him for a refund, the appellate judges concluded.

"Because he had inside knowledge of the bribery, Rosenberg's allegations likely were not either dependent upon or derived from the public disclosures," Judge Griesbach explained. "But that is no longer the test. Under current law, a relator must present 'genuinely new and material information' beyond what has been publicly disclosed."

Adding a few extra details did not elevate the claim, the court concluded.

"Having read the writing on the wall, Rosenberg divulged information about the bribery scheme in which he was an active and essential participant for nearly ten years. Rosenberg did not voluntarily initiate contact with the office of the inspector general and only provided information once he was contacted as part of the city's investigation... To hold that Rosenberg's disclosure was voluntary simply because no formal legal process required his cooperation in the investigation would frustrate the False Claims Ordinance's essential goal of motivating true volunteers and transform the ordinance into a vehicle for fraudsters to evade responsibility while at the same time profiting further from their crimes."

A copy of the ruling is available in a 200k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-14T00:04-08:00Ohio Town Cannot Survive Without Speed Camera Revenuehttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6420.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6420.aspThe village of New Miami told the Ohio Supreme Court last week that its "fiscal integrity" would be compromised if a lawsuit succeeds in stopping the use of speed cameras. In January, the state Court of Appeals sided with motorists who challenged the constitutionality of the one-square-mile speed trap town's photo radar program (view ruling). To avoid paying the resulting $3 million in refunds, New Miami is begging the high court for relief.

"The village now faces financial ruin should the Twelfth District's overly restrictive reading of the sovereign immunity statutes be allowed to stand, and the matter proceed to final judgment," New Miami attorney James J. Englert wrote.

The lower courts found New Miami's automated ticketing program unconstitutional because vehicle owners had no realistic opportunity to defend themselves against the $180 demand that they received in the mail. New Miami insists that it cannot be held liable, even for unconstitutional actions, because it is protected by sovereign immunity. The appellate and lower court judges disagreed, saying refunds were appropriate as restitution for unlawful actions. The village repeated arguments that had failed in the lower courts.

"The purported equitable restitution exception to immunity is not applicable here and should not be allowed to push a municipality into bankruptcy when exercising its core governmental function of regulating traffic speed to ensure safety and exercising quasi-judicial determination of civil liability for traffic violations," Englert wrote.

The photo radar program created unique problems for the town. Most of the typical legal problems a local government faces, such as discrimination or workplace injury lawsuits, are covered by insurance. Constitutional violations are not.

"Since the core governmental acts under which the lower courts have held the village liable do not constitute the typical ministerial or proprietary functions that are exceptions to the general grant of immunity, there is no insurance available to protect the village from ceasing operations," Englert wrote.

The biggest problem of all is that the town cannot afford to pay back any court-imposed judgment.

"In this case, Optotraffic received the automated speed enforcement program fines purportedly paid by the plaintiffs, and Optotraffic allocated the money in accordance with a contract between the village and Optotraffic, such that 40 percent of the funds collected by Optotraffic were retained by Optotraffic, and the remaining 60 percent of the funds were sent from Optotraffic to the village," Englert explained. "The only fund held by the village is, at most, 60 percent of the automated speed enforcement program fines paid by the plaintiffs."

There is no guarantee that the state Supreme Court will be interested in taking the case. The justices denied the village's request at an earlier stage in the proceedings. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-13T00:13-08:00Rhode Island, France, Italy: Speed Cameras Thwartedhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6416.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6416.aspA vigilante in Providence, Rhode Island, videotaped himself disabling a speed camera last week. GoLocal on Thursday showed footage of the device on Chalkstone Avenue being spraypainted with the messages "LOL" and "UR welcome" on the side. Another camera on Mount Pleasant Avenue had yellow paint covering its lenses. The camera on Peace Street was grabbed by vigilantes in January.

Heavy gunfire destroyed a speed camera in San Stino, Italy last week Monday. According to La Nuova di Venezia e Mestre, one shot hit the power supply, and a second blast hit the camera lens.

In Al Jubail, Saudi Arabia, vigilantes set fire to the speed camera on King Abdul Aziz Road last Tuesday. Video of the camera burning was posted on YouTube.

In the Dordogne department of France, France Bleu reports that a number of automated ticketing machines were disabled last week. The camera on the D710 in Saint-Laurent-sur-Manoire was painted orange, while pink paint and a sledgehammer was used on the camera on the D6089 in Coulounieix-Chamiers. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-12T00:16-08:00Louisiana Ticket Quota Caught On Tapehttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6415.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6415.aspPolice officials nearly always insist that ticket quotas are a myth. The denials, however, did not hold up in Gretna, Louisiana, where former Officer Daniel Swear produced a set of audio recordings in which his superiors told him in no uncertain terms that he had to step up the production of tickets solely for revenue purposes.

"That was my professional adult version of finding out Santa Claus wasn't real," Swear said in a deposition.

Swear sued his former employer for discrimination after he was forced to resign for not being sufficiently productive. The department expected its officers to write a minimum number of traffic tickets and arrests.

"Each day try to maintain your goal, one arrest, one summons," Lieutenant J.R. Rogers said on tape. "[People like triple murderer] Mark Pickens don't count because there is no money going into the system. Those guys don't go to court. They don't pay their fines."

Each officer's ticketing numbers were tallied during roll call and displayed on a scoreboard in Captain Scott Vinson's office.

"The ticket thing is all about the money," Sergeant Danielle Rodriguez says on tape.

Swear believed this conduct was unlawful. He filed a complaint with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the state attorney general. He made no secret of his opposition to the quota policy, driving around with a plate on the front of his car referencing Louisiana Revised Statute 40:2401.1 -- the ban on ticket quotas (view plate). He was ordered to get rid of the plate. Swear and another officer, Paige Brittany Brouillette, confirmed that Captain Vinson would justify the quota during meetings by by explaining the department received $1 million from speed cameras, and the money went into the officers' retirement fund, and this revenue had to be maintained at all costs.

"The patrol division used $1 million from the money generated by the Redflex camera cars and that there was a concern that that particular type of enforcement would go away because people were constantly challenging the constitutionality of it and they didn't know what they were going to do if they no longer had the funding from that," Swear testified. "So his goal then, or his task, was to make the patrol division financially independent of Redflex."

After hearing all the arguments, US District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown in January dismissed most of the claims against individual police officers, but she allowed the lawsuit against the city itself to proceed to trial.

"Plaintiff has put forth sufficient evidence to permit a reasonable trier of fact to find that plaintiff spoke on a matter of public concern when he spoke out against the alleged quota system implemented by the Gretna Police Department," Judge Brown ruled. "A reasonable trier of fact could find that the animus of the constitutional violation was the existence of a policy of implementing quota systems."

Gretna police officials insist that they do not have a ticket quota. A copy of the January ruling is available in a 600k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-09T00:16-08:00Georgia: County Lines Are Not A Safe Haven From Traffic Stopshttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6417.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6417.aspContrary to what is sometimes seen on television, it is not always possible to escape a traffic stop by driving over the county line. The Georgia Court of Appeals made this point last month in a ruling that overturned a lower court judge's overly limited interpretation of police jurisdiction.

Alysia Charles was behind the wheel when she drove past a highway speed trap run by a Fayette County Sheriff's deputy. She was not speeding, but the deputy noticed he could write a ticket for having a defective license plate light. The trap had been set up less than a mile from the Clayton County line, so by the time the squad car began rolling and caught up to Charles, they were just over the border.

"We were going from a dead stop to get up there to 55," the deputy testified. "I'm not going to floor it to catch up with a car over a tag light. I'm not going to do that to catch up to them. In light traffic, I [easily] catch up to them."

The deputy decided to let Charles drive another third of a mile before lighting her up and ordering her to pull over, observing that the ground was more level farther up the road. The deputy explained that it is easier to perform field sobriety tests on level roads, and in this case such a test turned out to be necessary.

From the smell of marijuana and alcohol, the deputy quickly surmised that Charles was driving under the influence (DUI). Charles fought back. Under Georgia law, police officers generally need to operate within their jurisdiction unless they need to chase a suspect into another jurisdiction, but the deputy in this case could hardly be in "hot pursuit" of a burnt out tag light. Although the trial judge agreed with Charles, the three-judge appellate panel sided with the deputy.

"We assert jurisdiction to avoid any error at trial based on references to the illegality of the stop," Chief Judge Sara L. Doyle wrote for the panel.

The appellate panel pointed out that "hot pursuit" does not mean a high speed chase with sirens blazing. All that matters is the continuity of the pursuit.

"Under these facts, the decision to look for safe, level ground to execute the traffic stop did not interrupt the immediacy or continuity of the pursuit, nor did it materially add to the duration of the pursuit -- the deputies stopped Charles less than a mile after starting from a standstill on a highway with a 55 MPH speed limit," Judge Doyle concluded. "Therefore, the trial court erred by concluding that the stop was not authorized under the 'hot pursuit' doctrine."

A copy of the ruling is available in a 100k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-08T00:06-08:00New Rule Makes Electric Cars Beephttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6413.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6413.aspOne of the distinct benefits of electric automobiles -- the quiet ride -- is about to disappear. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last week rejected requests to reconsider new rules requiring hybrid and electric vehicles to make more noise while moving, or while stopped at traffic lights. In 2011, President Obama signed a bill directing the agency to come up with details for how to implement the idea.

"This landmark legislation requires electric and hybrid car manufacturers to add sounds to alert all pedestrians to the presence of these unusually quiet vehicles," Obama said at the time. "These provisions will help increase the safety and independence of blind and visually impaired Americans."

Studies show that hybrid cars are 18 percent more likely to slam into pedestrians and 51 percent more likely to strike bicyclists compared to conventional, gas-powered alternatives. So NHTSA followed the lead of the European Union which adopted similar, but not identical noise requirements.

The newly updated US rule mandates that half of all quiet cars manufactured after September 1, 2019 start making noise any time the vehicle transmission is not in park. The noise would only shut off after the car travels faster than 19 MPH. All electrics and hybrids must comply by 2020, and manufacturer will have to document compliance with regular reports. NHTSA estimates manufacturers will spend $42 million to satisfy the new requirements, a figure manufacturers say is far too low.

Manufacturers must ensure that the noisemaking device cannot be defeated or removed. Local governments would not be affected because big, electric-powered municipal buses are exempt from the noise requirement. Manufacturers will have only a limited amount of control over how their cars sound.

"The safety standard allows manufacturers to provide each vehicle with one or more alert sounds that comply, at the time of manufacture, with the safety standard," the final rule states. "Thus, a manufacturer may, if it so chooses, equip a vehicle with different sounds to denote different operating scenarios, such as stationary, forward or reverse."

The agency noted that "for the time being" the rules do not apply to gasoline-engine cars, but NHTSA did not rule out expanding the regulation to require noisemakers on conventional vehicles. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-07T00:03-08:00Maryland House Passes Minor Speed Camera Reformhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6414.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6414.aspMembers of Maryland's House of Delegates have proposed sweeping reforms for the state's troubled speed camera programs this session. Last week, lawmakers chose to advance only the most minor of adjustment to existing practices. The House on Thursday gave a unanimous nod to House Bill 204, a measure that in its original form would have mandated yellow times last a minimum of 4 seconds at intersections with red light cameras.

"Under the bill, the minimum must be set at four seconds," the official legislative analysis for HB204 explained. "Potentially, then, the duration of some yellow lights could increase by as much as one second. Accordingly, the number of violations captured by red light cameras at those intersections may decrease significantly and result in fewer citations."

Under heavy pressure from jurisdictions that would lose revenue from longer yellows, delegates deleted the 4 second requirement. The remaining legislation, as passed by the House, states that a red light camera ticket can only be enforced if the yellow signal duration is consistent with state regulations. If passed by the state Senate and signed by the governor, motorists would then be permitted to challenge photo tickets at locations with overly short yellows.

Motorists have not had this power before. As the Maryland Drivers Alliance noted in testimony before the House Transportation Committee last week, Maryland courts will not even allow mathematical evidence demonstrating errors in a speed camera's reading. Jurisdictions need only point to a self-calibration printout from the camera to establish guilt in court. For example, Rockville's speed camera falsely accused a school bus of traveling 54 MPH in a 25 MPH zone -- a speed impossible in the circumstances on the road in question.

"All of the documents for this violation were in order," the Maryland Drivers Alliance's Ron Ely testified last week. "A police officer had approved the violation, they had even prepared a sworn statement that was supposedly 'signed' by a police officer stating that the violation was valid. The calibration certificate showed the equipment passed all tests... Yet an annual calibration certificate such as the one for this violation would currently be considered absolute proof of guilt in district court."

House Bill 1151, which has yet to have a vote in committee, would ensure accuracy by requiring speed camera photographs to be time stamped so that the speed reading can be independently verified. In addition, each jurisdiction would have to calibrate "all key systems relevant to the accuracy of the system," which would include the internal clock used on the camera.

House Bill 1365 would require school zone cameras to have a real-time display of a vehicle's speed so that motorists would know to slow down. The measure would also allow school zone ticketing only during school hours and in locations that are actually near schools. It would also prohibit private vendors from being paid more than 30 percent of the speed camera program's profits. This measure has not been voted on in committee.

A copy of each of the bills mentioned above is available in a 250k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-06T00:21-08:00Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, UK: Speed Cameras Thwartedhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6410.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6410.aspAn Australian comedian posted a video gone viral of a speed camera foiled by a towel. The video released on Instagram and Facebook last week Monday showed "Demerit Man" approach a mobile speed camera car in Tamworth, New South Wales. Wearing shorts, a tank top and a "photo-proof beer box hat," the man quickly attached the towel to the back of the photo radar van, rendering it incapable of issuing tickets.

In France, vigilantes won a major victory as a court in Mont-de-Marsan ruled that covering a speed camera in garbage bags did not constitute criminal damage. Lionel Candelon, leader of the group Angry Ducks, was acquitted of all charges related to his disabling of a pair of speed cameras on March 20, Sud Ouest reported. In total, his group has taken 30 automated ticketing machines out of service. On the D973 in Saint-Aubin-des-Preaux, vigilantes spraypainted the speed camera on Thursday, according to Ouest France. On Tuesday, the speed camera in Orthoux-Serignac-Quilhan and in Aigremont were destroyed by fire, France 3 reported. Nearly 800 motorcyclists attended a rally in Nantes last week Saturday to protest the lowering of the speed limit, according to MotoMag. Participants covered two speed cameras on the D723 during the event. In Sommepy-Tahure last week Sunday, the speed camera on the D977 was decorated with a devilish smiley face made with green spraypaint, L'Union reported. On Wednesday, the speed camera on the RD948 in Saint-Christophe-du-Ligneron was painted white, according to Le Courrier Vendeen. Around the same time, a tire was used to burn the speed camera on the D978 near Tamnay-en-Bazois, Le Journal du Centre reported. In Aubencheul-au-Bac on Thusday, a speed camera was wrapped in protest posters, according to La Voix du Nord. The speed camera in La Feuillee was spraypainted red last week Saturday, Le Telegramme reported.

In Modena, Italy, black spraypaint was used to defeat the speed camera on the Via Nonantolana, according to Gazzetta di Modena.

In Exmouth, England, vigilantes used black spraypaint to take out the speed camera on the A376 Exeter Road, according to the Exmouth Journal.

Vigilantes in Japan set fire to a speed camera in Saitama Prefecture earlier this month. The Orbis brand automated ticketing machine had been issuing tickets on National Highway 43, Motor Fan reported. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-05T00:01-08:00Tennessee: Forgetful Cop Can Testify Based On Notes, Videohttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6409.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6409.aspCops in Tennessee no longer need to have any independent recollection of the events about which they testify. The state Court of Criminal Appeals last week found no legal barrier to having a police officer testify in court about an incident that he does not remember.

Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Kenneth White had stopped Benjamin Tate Brown on January 13, 2016 for allegedly running a stop sign. While pulled over, Brown appeared to be tipsy and was eventually arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI). Brown's attorney attempted to have the initial traffic stop ruled invalid because the police officer had no recollection of what he was testifying about under oath.

"And, again, other than what you saw on the video and other than what you read in your police report, you have no memory of this interaction independent of those -- that document and that video that occurred with [Brown] on that evening?" the lawyer asked.

"No, sir," Trooper White replied. "That's correct."

The lawyer pointed out that the video does not show Brown's car for the entire duration of the turn, and that Brown could have stopped out of the frame. The Confrontation Clause gives defendants the right to cross-examine the witnesses against them, but if an officer is testifying based on nothing but written notes, the "witness" becomes, in effect, the piece of paper.

The appellate court was not persuaded. It was good enough that the trooper looked at the dashcam video and perused his notes prior to the hearing.

"Trooper White testified that, after reviewing his report and the video, he recalled observing the defendant's vehicle fail to come to a stop at the stop sign," Judge Robert L. Holloway Jr wrote for the appellate panel. "The trial court accredited the testimony of Trooper White."

The judges asserted that a true independent recollection of events is not needed. They also pointed to elements that Brown's lawyer failed to raise at trial.

"Trooper White was not questioned about anything that may or may not have been in the report concerning the defendant's failure to stop at the stop sign," Judge Holloway noted. "The report was not entered as an exhibit at the suppression hearing or at trial. The report is not part of the record on appeal, and we therefore have no way to determine whether the report may have aided Trooper White in refreshing his memory about the facts of this traffic stop."

The court upheld Brown's DUI conviction. A copy of the ruling is available in an 150k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-02T00:05-08:00Illinois Appellate Court Again Sides With Short Yellow Timeshttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6412.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6412.aspShort yellow times are just fine, the Illinois Appellate Court declared in a ruling last month. A three-judge panel rescued Chicago's red light camera program from the prospect of paying $7.7 million in refunds to the 77,000 motorists who were ticketed at intersections where the yellow light was shorter than the federally mandated three-second minimum.

In 2014, a number of administrative law judges began throwing out red light camera tickets after it was shown that individuals were being ticketed for entering the intersection after the light had been yellow for 2.9 seconds. Turning the light red an extra tenth of a second early created 77,000 tickets. Subsequent investigation revealed that the signal controller allowed the yellow time, set at 3.0 seconds by Chicago, to fluctuate from 2.89 seconds to 3.12 seconds, as confirmed by the device's manufacturer.

"Essentially, plaintiffs argue that the city's yellow light signals do not conform to MUTCD [Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices] standards because given normal fluctuations in power line frequencies, the actual minimum duration could be as short as 2.89 seconds," Judge Sheldon A. Harris wrote for the appellate court. "However, as noted in the Peek Traffic/Signal Group letter, the actual duration could also be from 3.0 to 3.12 seconds which would be in compliance with the MUTCD minimum recommendations."

In 2015, the appellate court threw out direct video evidence that showed, on many occasions, the yellow lasted just 2.9 seconds. So in the new ruling, the judges ruled it was "mere speculation" to claim that the yellow timing ever fell below 3.0 seconds.

Chicago's own inspector general looked into the controversy and identified documents that proved the city had ordered Xerox to issue tickets when the light lasted for 2.9 seconds -- something that even Redflex Traffic Systems, the Australian vendor caught in a corruption scandal, refused to do when it was in charge of the cameras (view report). Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) briefly considered offering refunds for the shortened signal timing, but he later decided not to do so.

The three-judge appellate panel also provided cover to Chicago for entering the deal with Redflex Traffic Systems of Australia to issue red light camera tickets as civil violations in 2003, before the General Assembly legalized such arrangements.

A copy of the ruling is available in an 80k PDF file at the source link below. Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-03-01T00:04-08:00Redflex Continues To Lose Moneyhttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6411.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6411.aspRedflex Traffic Systems lost $11.8 million in the past six months, continuing the Australian photo ticketing firm's losing streak. In a report released to the Australian Securities Exchange on Monday, Redflex conceded that it has failed to pull out of the nosedive it has been in since 2014, when news of the Chicago, Illinois criminal bribery scandal surfaced.

Redflex last year leaned on shareholders to contribute $15.6 million to shore up the company's finances, but the capital infusion was not enough to kickstart a recovery. The best news Redflex had to offer shareholders was that the losses were not as bad as they were in the last report to the market.

"The decrease in revenue was primarily attributable to... lower revenue from the Americas predominantly from the termination of a program in Rochester, New York in the first half of fiscal 2017 and lower revenue from Mexico," the Redflex earnings statement explained. "The result in the prior period was driven by the recognition of the value of the full settlement relating to the city of Chicago legal matters and the impairment of trade receivables in Saudi Arabia."

Overall, revenue from speed cameras and red light cameras in the US dropped 11.3 percent. The Redflex balance sheet would have looked worse, but the company was saved by President Trump's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

"The recognition of tax expense in the period reflects the reduction of US based deferred tax assets due to the reduction in the federal corporate tax rate to 21 percent in that jurisdiction," the statement explained.

The lost receipts from customers puts pressure on the Australian firm to seek to extract greater revenue from existing red light camera and speed camera programs, even outside of the United States.

"The group continues to encounter uncertainties surrounding some contracts in certain countries including in the Middle East and Mexico," the company conceded. "Due to the uncertainty around our ultimate collection and timing of the receipt of these receivables, the group continues to provide against the likelihood of ultimate collectability. Current provisions held for the Middle East and Mexico are $3.6 million and $5.5 million respectively." Source]]>TheNewspaper Editor2018-02-28T00:05-08:00Legislative Update: Speed Cameras In Indiana, Iowa And Virginiahttp://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6408.asp
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/64/6408.aspLobbyists for speed camera companies like American Traffic Solutions (ATS) and Redflex Traffic Systems of Australia have been making a major push to expand their marketplace in the United States. While this effort has advanced in Indiana, it has hit a roadblock in Virginia and faces a potential rollback in Iowa.

Earlier this month the Virginia state Senate gave the green light to measures that would allow speed cameras in freeway work zones and roads in the vicinity of schools (view bill). The Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Carrico (R-Galax) pushed both bills through the process after taking campaign donations from ATS. His effort to expand photo enforcement throughout the state failed last week as the House of Delegates took up the issue.

On Thursday, a House Militia, Police and Public Safety subcommittee refused to advance the freeway speed camera measure with a 4 to 2 vote. The same panel unanimously shelved the school photo radar authorization scheme. With the General Assembly scheduled to adjourn for the year on March 10, both measures are unlikely to be brought back until next year.

The Indiana House Roads and Transportation Committee on Thursday adopted a measure meant to eventually bring speed cameras to Hoosier highways. Representatives Jim Pressel (R-Rolling Prairie), Edmond Soliday (R-Valparaiso), Charles Moseley (D–Portage) and Donna Schaibley (R-Carmel) introduced House Resolution 8, which urges the legislative council to take up the issue of work zone speed cameras and banning cell phone use while driving.

The sixteen members of the legislative council are responsible for setting the agenda for upcoming sessions. The group influences policy by organizing study committees to work through the assigned topics so that bills can be presented in to the General Assembly, as needed. In the past, ATS has made campaign contributions to both the Republican and Democratic Party state committees in Indiana.

In Iowa, the state Senate on Wednesday put a hold on a bill that would prohibit the speed cameras already in use throughout the state. The delay was meant to allow state Senator Tony Bisignano (D-Des Moines) to come up with an amendment to gut Senate File 2148 on behalf of the cities using cameras. While the measure is presented as "regulating" rather than banning cameras, the text actually allows cities like Cedar Rapids, Des Moines and Muscatine to completely evade regulation with a grandfather clause.

"A local authority may continue to operate such a system in the same manner as the system was operated prior to January 1, 2017," Bisignano's amendment states.